SANA’A: Shia rebels and gunmen from the powerful Hashid tribe in northern Yemen agreed a ceasefire yesterday after three days of intense clashes, tribal sources and official media said.
Fighting erupted on Monday when Shia Huthi rebels tried to seize the towns of Wadi Khaywan and Usaimat, strongholds of the Hashid tribe in Amran province, sources said.
But the clashes stopped late on Wednesday after a presidential commission mediated a ceasefire which came into effect at 7pm (1600 GMT), sources in the area said.
The two sides also agreed to the deployment of monitors to ensure the truce is observed, and fighters will start to leave their positions today morning, Saba state news agency said.
Shia rebels known as Huthis had launched the attacks in retaliation for the Hashid tribe’s support for hardline Sunni Salafist groups fighting Huthis in Dammaj.
The northern town in the province of Saada has been besieged by the Shiite rebels for months. According to witnesses, the clashes killed and wounded dozens.
The tribal sources said the fighting had intensified yesterday, while the Shiite Huthi Ansarullah (Partisans of God) group said on their website they had taken several Hashid strongholds.
During the battles, a Hashid chief, Hashim Al Ahmar, escaped an attack but his guard and four of his relatives were killed, tribal sources said.AFP
